Photos

It is difficult to upload pictures here, it takes a long time on a dial up connection, and my fancy new camera takes quite large photos. I will try to upload as many as possible to give you a taste of what we have been seeing on our journey and in clinic today.

Train outside Kisumu
Our stove

Our Gracious Hosts: Alphonce and Joyce in their Kitchen

Alphonce on a boat in Lake Victoria

Our Friend Dan near his father's homestead. 

He Brought us to the country for a lovely dinner with his family. This picture is taken in a town near Lawanda, by his father's home.

A matatu (taxi) boat on Lake Victoria, near Mfangano Island. I took this while boating back from visiting the clinic on Mfangano Island at the new Kageno Site. We will be opening the clinic next week and seeing patients there.

Our Patients: We saw 200 children to first day. The Kageno school opened after the new year and we did wellness child examinations. We also detected 3 cases of Malaria, 1 case of Entamoeba Histolytica, saw ring worm, and some strange skin infections likely secondary to malnutrition. We also will deworm the incoming preschool class. The older children we just dewormed in Sept.

Kageno

It is amazing how the place has grown since I was last here. The grounds, once filled with sand and fishing boats are now filled with trees and plant life. The facility now has running water, with a flushing toilet for the surrounding community. Behind the community center sits a garden for the community to learn to plant different vegetables and trees and may bring them home upon finishing.
When I was here in 2006, the plants and trees were just being planted. The grounds were bare and the community center with a computer center and clinic were the only standing buildings. Now, a new clinic addition is almost finished behind the existing clinic. There is also a goat project underway for the community, where Kageno is breeding goats and selling them online to donate to the community. The people of Kalunga beach can then use them for milk, a much needed nutritious resource scarce here on the island.
The clinic is staffed full time with a RN, Magdeline, from Mon-Friday. She sees the community, the Kageno school children, and the Kalunga beach women for family planning. The lab is now up and running allowing for specific testing to take place. One can be tested at the clinic for malaria, pregnancy, urine analysis, syphilis, TB, and various stool testing can take place. Behind the clinic sits a VCT center (volunteer counseling and testing center for HIV). Patients can be tested and counseled on HIV.
The pharmacy is now stocked with many antibiotics, anti-fungals, and anti-parasitic agents. There are many topical medicines for the ever present ringworm in most children seen. The only thing lacking are ARVs for HIV therapy. After a discussion with Magdeline the RN at Kageno, she states she is preparing for training in order to administer ARVs. This will allow many in the community to receive their treatment for HIV at the facility instead of sending them to Tom Mboya medical center which is nearby.
The visit to Mfangano island was also filled with advancements made by Kageno. During my previous visit, Kageno Mfangano had not yet broke ground. The island essentially looks the same except for a new project underway. Kageno has built and is now running a nursery school for children on this remote island. Nearby, a newly constructed clinic is almost ready for patients. We will be traveling there next week for the opening of the clinic. The clinic looks great, there are 3 examination rooms, an office and a latrine will be built prior to the opening next week. The facilities are second to none here on Mfangano. After opening, the chief will announce it to the island and people will come to our clinic. I look forward to being present for the grand opening of such a facility on Mfangano.

The chief of Mfangano had invited us to his home for a wonderful lunch where a goat was slaughtered for all to feast on. The home was filled with various family members and people of the Mfangano community. Alphonce, Dan, Anjali and I were honored for being present and it was a fantastic honor. The chief had actually remembered my last visit when my OCA team resided on Mfangano. I found my return to Mfangano quite humbling. The island is as I remember, except for a seasonal waterfall off in the distance. That was not present on my previous trek. The rainy season is definitely present, trekking through mud in order to feast on goat, however, it makes the scenery quite lush and green. Imagine Jurassic park at its finest.

Senses

Upon arriving in Nairobi I was immediately surrounded by familiarity. I am not keen to Nairobi, however our time was well spent. We picked up a phone, navigated a foreign city alone as 2 Mzungus, and jumped on a train to Kisumu. The train ride to Kisumu was amazing to say the least. The Lunatic Express, at it is so lovingly called here, passes through many small villages throughout the ride, one in particular in Kibera. Kibera is a slum in Nairobi, that can only be described by its smells and sounds. The sight of it is too much to explain without seeing it. We rode through the slum on the train and heard the music playing loudly with people milling around. The smell is best described by imagining a "flying toilet". I was told the train was derailed in Kibera 1 week prior to our arrival and was just up and running on 12/30 the day we took it. The train was derailed by "flying toilets" in the slum. There are no toilets or latrines within the slum, thus the people will defecate into bags and "throw" them into the air, which apparently landed onto the tracks and derailed it. This story is difficult to believe, but the smell was not. Regardless, we passed through Kibera uneventfully and made it just outside of Nairobi when the train stopped for several hours because of rains covering the tracks. We eventually made it to Kisumu after a 17hr train ride. Alphonce, our friend and host here in Rusinga, so kindly picked us up and drove us to our new home. Upon arrival to Alphonce's we were welcomed "Kenyan style". The smell here quickly reminded me why western Kenya is so close to my heart. The lake off in the distance fills the air with the freshness of a Lake. The air is clear and clean. Surrounding us are the sounds of Benga music, not to mention goats, donkeys, chickens, and children playing. It is an experience to say the least, to hear complete and utter silence without any machines to bother the silence. Looking out at the lake and watching the fishermen set sail is a sight, again, that can only be seen and not described. I realized how much I missed my second home and how welcome I felt when landing at Alphonce's Shamba.

Higa Manyien Ma Ber

HAPPY NEW YEAR (Higa Manyien ma Ber)!

After a long, LONG journey we have arrived. We are now relaxing at Alphonce's home on beautiful Rusinga island. We arrived yesterday, 12/21/2009, in the evening. I am having difficulty charging our phone, but when it is charged we can receive phone calls if you would like. I will place the phone number in here for you to use while in Kenya. I was told this is how your call, but please if it is not working google it. They tell us you need to use the plus sign in front of the number to text, but we are not sure. I will put up pictures and a nice story when we have more internet service and time. For now know this: we are safe in Luoland. We will be traveling to Mfangano Island in the morning and we start our clinic on Monday!!.
Phone number :
001-254-720-269-244

to text:
+254720269244


ORITI,
Becca

Thank You

As I sit here packing, I am reminded of all the people I'm leaving behind for a month. I would just like to take this opportunity to thank all of you for your support. Particularly, those of you who have donated to Kageno or have donated goods for us to bring along. I did not expect such a large response and I am very grateful, as are those people supported by Kageno. And I assure you, your donations will go a long way...

I leave tomorrow... Stay Tuned!

Where are you going?

I'm often asked, "Where exactly are you going?" All I can say is Rusinga island is a land far, far away.

A flight from Chicago to Amsterdam? 7hrs
A flight from Amsterdam to Nairobi? 10hrs
A train from Nairobi to Kisumu? 12hrs
A car from Kisumu to Lwanda Koteino? 2hrs
Ferry from Lwanda Koteino to Mbita? 2hrs
A car from Mbita to Rusinga/KAGENO? 30mins
The entire journey? Timeless

Africa, Kenya's on the East coast borders: North: Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan. West: Uganda. South: Tanzania. East: Indian Ocean

Map of Kenya from Lonely Planet

Look in southern Kenya in the middle, you'll find Nairobi the capital. Then go West until you hit Lake Victoria and a bit North and you'll find Kisumu.

Rusinga and Mfangano are West of Kisumu in Lake Victoria

The Islands

 

Kalunga Beach, Rusinga Island

KAGENO KENYA

Photos from Lake Victoria 2006

Photos from Lake Victoria

Click on link to see a few more photos

Journey to Rusinga

In 2006, as a third year medical student, I spent two amazing months in Kenya, on Lake Victoria. I have been blessed with the opportunity to return to this beautiful region for another month. I will be spending the majority of my time on the Rusinga Island, with an organization called KAGENO. I will also be "boating" over to a neighboring island, Mfangano (where I spent the majority of my previous trip) to work on Kageno's newest project.

In 2006, my trip was filled with emotional dichotomy. I went with Operation Crossroads Africa, an organization who sends students all over Africa for two months each summer to work with various projects. Our project involved health care and education in the Lake Victoria region of Kenya. This organization is well run, organized and planned an eye-opening adventure for the nine of us. However, the days spent in Lake Victoria often ended in frustration. Our daily mobile clinics to various Lake Victorian islands were worth while, however, it was difficult to leave. Knowing that when we departed in our little boat the island would be left without basic health care was quite frustrating, to say the least. However, what could we do?

What's in a name?

Greetings to all,
I have created this blog for any and all of those interested. In the upcoming month, I will take up residence on the small island of Rusinga, in Lake Victoria. I look forward to sharing my experiences with you. I hope my journey and the journey we share on this blog will be both enlightening and educational.

Adhiambo is a common name in West Kenya, where mostly the Luo tribe of Kenya resides. Most Luo surnames are a description of the person's birthday. Adhiambo, or Odhiambo (if you are a man), means born in the late afternoon or evening. I was given this name by my Mwalimu (teacher) during my last trip to Kenya because I was born around 6pm. I often would introduce myself as Becca Adhiambo and the children would giggle and think I was crazy. I look forward to many more introductions as Becca Adhiambo.

Safari means to go on a journey in Swahili, the language of much of East Africa.  And that is exactly what I am doing, embarking on a new journey...stay tuned.